Middletown budget preview: small operating surplus but special‑education, legal and purchased services pressure funds

The Middletown Board of Education Budget Committee on an evening meeting reviewed February financials and transfers and heard the superintendent’s timeline for the 2026–27 budget.

Natalie, the district’s director of finance, told the committee that February showed a modest operating surplus of $259,816 — about 0.25% of the total budget — while the combined projected salary surplus stood at $346,479. "The benefits position for February shows a surplus of 145,879," she said, adding the benefits surplus dropped from the prior month because of increased workers' compensation costs.

Natalie said the district’s purchased‑services deficit widened by $107,613, from negative $170,712 to a negative $278,325, driven principally by snow‑plowing contracts, elevator maintenance, out‑of‑town special‑education transport and security monitoring. She said several one‑time facilities expenses also contributed: the high‑school pool needed repainting and a federally mandated drain cover after a prior safety incident.

Board members asked for details about elevator work and counts. Natalie identified the $21,000 elevator charge as for Snow School and later corrected the district’s elevator total to 11. On legal services, Natalie attributed higher spending to multiple areas, including "matters to do with the prior superintendent and the current interim superintendent" as well as special‑education and human‑resources cases and contract negotiations.

The committee discussed Line 56106, a consolidation of two formerly separate food lines after a committee request from Chris Cardela; Natalie said the move will centralize charges for nurse‑office snacks and staff meal costs into one food‑expenditure line.

Natalie also outlined transfers to cover an overrun in the Naviance guidance software line and to move funds for AP Physics professional development, and she described small end‑of‑year consolidations at several schools to simplify purchases ahead of the April purchase‑order deadline.

Interim Superintendent Dr. Adley reviewed the 2026–27 budget calendar, saying budget books are scheduled to be distributed in early March, the superintendent’s budget will be presented at the March 10 board meeting, and the Board of Education hopes to approve its budget on March 24 to meet municipal deadlines. "You will get a presentation by me which just gives you the highlights and the overview," he said.

On program funding, board members queried whether the Legacy program is fully grant‑funded. Natalie said Legacy is funded principally through the Alliance grant and a related 2% grant but cautioned that state competitive grants for new positions will not be published until closer to the grant release; she urged the board not to assume those competitive funds are guaranteed.

No recorded roll‑call or vote tallies appear in the transcript for the approval of minutes or for adjournment. A motion to approve the January 26 minutes was made and seconded early in the meeting and the meeting was later closed after a motion to adjourn was moved and seconded.